So you’re saying that first degree murder and involuntary manslaughter should carry the same penalty? Harsh. 

Of course it was protested, but do you think people in my ‘80s Midwest town were aware of it? Hardly, and my high school was about 50/50 black and white kids.

Glad to meet someone who grew up in the exact same place as me and knows what went on there.

Well I certainly don’t see blackface as a way to honor black people. My point was simply that people in my town weren’t exactly purveyors of the history of civil rights and minstrel characters, and that’s one of the things that education and the internet provide us with clarity in today. As another poster mentioned,…

I pretty much agree with everything you said, and the Virginia cases seemingly are different than those referenced in this article.

Thanks for the link. Nothing says great writing like an intro paragraph warning of sarcasm ahead.

I appreciate the powerful insight.

Thanks for the positive contribution. 

I appreciate your contribution to the discussion.

I’m not sure you even read my post. All that I said was intent and apologies are important, because people weren’t woke in small Indiana cities 35 years ago like they are today.  

Congratulations. You proved both mine and ThisIsNotYourBurner’s point.

Yeah, I was the only liberal atheist I knew growing up in my Indiana town, so I wasn’t exactly in the hotbed of the civil rights movement, and I doubt that was known by most. I live on the West Coast now, and I’d imagine it was different here.

I can’t tell if this is a parody comment, or you’re proving my last sentence.

So much this, especially when the people apologize. It’s all about intent and how you deal with the backlash. When I was a kid in the ‘80s, I remember lots of white kids and adults dressing up like famous black idols, like Michael Jordan, Michael Jackson, Mr. T, Mike Tyson (yikes,) etc., and some did wear blackface. A…

Polishing a TuRD.

As I mentioned above, I’d rather have a trunk that conceals that equipment.

Trunks rule if you have expensive equipment/cargo that you want to conceal. 

Nah. It would just be the most extreme case of societal excommunication. I don’t care what happens to him after.

Yeah, I’m anti-death penalty because of the relatively high rate of innocent people being put do death...but, in a case like this, throw him in a wood-chipper.

I rarely see them on public roads, but I’ve seen a few at the track. They’re little monsters.